BONUS EPILOGUE
bonus epilogue
VIOLET
ONE MONTH LATER
“Maybe we’ll have another wedding here soon,” Ella says on a sigh.
I cringe and adjust the pink lily in the pot I’m working with. “Luke, this woman needs less free time on her hands.”
“She’s got plenty to do,” Luke says, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
“Shoo. Go check on the strawberries or something,” I chuckle as I brush my hair off my face with my wrist.
It’s not that I don’t love Ella. I do. But she’s in her little love bubble that only seems to have grown since her sisters found love. Now that they’re all paired off, she’s going to be moving onto us.
Alright—that sounds worse than I meant it. Ella isn’t into matchmaking. She just loves love. She wants everyone to find their happy and in our family’s case, it won’t come without a little chaos.
Ever since we discovered why Luke’s pumpkins went so wonky last fall and each of our places regarding the future of this farm and love , things have been a little squirrelly.
We’ve all been a little on edge, unsure of what the future holds in more than one way. I’m thankful, though, for Ella’s ideas on how to push more celebrations here to keep the farm busy. To keep us busy.
Typically, the Shamrock Shuffle events stick strictly to town, but this year our farm held a one-day event on the schedule and it was a massive success. It was exhausting, but a lot of fun.
Luke comes up beside me, his eyes watchful. I hate that I can read his body language without even having to really look at him. He’s worried about how much I’m taking on with these new mini festivals on the farm, but he doesn’t want to outright ask.
Chicken.
I’m fine, I want to scream.
They all worry about me too much.
“Will flowers for Easter be too close to the flower festival? It’ll be alright if we pull back some, Violet.”
I tip my head back and take a deep breath before I turn to face him.
“It’s perfectly fine. You nixed my idea of planting all the tulips for a u-cut field, so it’s mostly just arrangements.” I wrinkle my nose, annoyed at how bristly I sound.
“We’ll have u-cut fields for the sunflowers and the zinnias,” he says gently.
“But there’s nowhere close that has tulip fields! You’re literally sending people away from here by not doing it.”
I sound like a petulant child, but I don’t know how else to communicate with him. No one seems to take me seriously since I’m the youngest and ‘still have so much to learn’.
“It’s a lot to change at once, Vi. We’ll put it on the list for next year. We’ve got to be really careful to not overdo it, so we still provide a pleasant customer experience. Okay?”
But I hear what he’s not saying. The magic that runs beneath the farm is unpredictable. We don’t know what it’s going to do or even what all it’s capable of.
I know he’s right, but it doesn’t make me feel more included. With the exception of Laila, no one spends more time on social media scoping out what people are looking for in a farm experience.
I know what I’m talking about.
And that’s exactly why I planted some tulips anyway, as soon as I knew the weather wouldn’t kill them. It’s a small field, not quite enough for a social media backdrop, but enough to gather valuable data to arm myself with.
He won’t be particularly happy with me, but he’ll get over it. It’s what big brothers do, especially overprotective ones.
“Fine,” I grumble. “Can I at least do the flower crown station again? That seemed to go over really well.”
“You should! I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that,” Ella says, slipping beside Luke. “Weston mentioned something about a little extra luck from your clover crown. Do you have any idea what he’s talking about?”
I’m really hoping my face isn’t showing every emotion I have right now. I told him that as a myth, but too late to discover that he really buys into all of that.
Which is unfortunate since I’ve heard similar things from other customers.
Surely it’s a fluke.
“It was a story I made up for the kids. I guess I was pretty convincing.” I offer my best smile and shrug.
“Wasn’t this pink a minute ago?” Luke asks.
I frown and follow his gaze to the lily I was just working with. It was definitely pink a few minutes ago, and now it’s a light lavender.
That’s not good.
“Maybe you should get your eyes checked. You are pushing thirty-five, right?”
Luke narrows his eyes at me. “There’s no need to play dirty. Must be the light in here.”
“Could be,” I nod. “The sun is going down.”
“Let’s go make sure Lucy has finished her homework.” Ella’s eyes land on mine before she turns her full attention to her husband. “And then I’ll help your mom with dinner.”
“Sounds good.” He gazes at the flower one last time before shaking his head and adjusting his cowboy hat. “Don’t work too late.”
“No problem, Dad!” I call after him.
He chuckles as they walk out the greenhouse door.
Panic flits around in my chest. This is new-ish.
Every once in a while, a plant might go a little haywire and I just chalked it up under the category of ‘accidents happen’. But since last fall, it's been happening more often. I haven’t told anyone because things have been calm and I don’t want to sound the alarm for no good reason.
I reach out and delicately touch the petals, watching in fascination as they bloom into a deeper purple.
It’s almost like it’s sensing my feelings.
“Well.” I sigh. “I think it’s safe to say that I must be number two on the list.”
We wondered how we’d figure out who was next. If there would be signs to signal who was up next to ‘save’ the farm.
I’m not sure how I feel about it being me. But I guess I’ll find out soon enough.